5. Results
5.2 Data structure
5.2.1 Perception of sustainability situation and challenges
The first aggregate dimension is called “Perception of sustainability situation and challenges”
and it aims to answer the customer perception concept in the research model. In this dimension, I study how the customers perceive the sustainability transformation and situation in the construction industry. The dimension includes three 2nd order themes:
“Customer’s knowledge about sustainable building”, “Perception of importance of sustainable building” and “Perception of sustainability challenges”. Altogether the dimension
includes 70 1st order concepts and therefore, the majority of the concepts that emerged from the interviews contribute to this dimension. The dimension includes all those concepts and themes that describe and explain how B2B customers in the construction industry view the current situation of sustainability transformation.
The 2nd order theme is called “Customer’s knowledge about sustainable building” and it includes altogether 23 concepts that are demonstrated in table 2 below. The dimension grouped all those concepts that portrayed how well B2B customers know the central terms of sustainable building, where has that information come from, and generally how well informed they are about the subject. The awareness of the situation can be considered as an important element of the perception since the first step of the perception process is noticing the information. The quality and amount of information affect how B2B customers form an interpretation and perception of the issue at hand.
Table 2. 2nd order theme “Customer’s knowledge about sustainable building” and the 1st order
Circular economy is familiar in terms of avoiding unrecyclable and expendable products.
Knowledge of sustainable building comes mainly from news and media LCA is somehow familiar in terms of how long the building lasts Carbon neutrality is familiar from forest industry and finance news.
Carbon neutrality is known from news and media Carbon neutrality is known from conversations Circular economy is familiar in terms of recycling Circular economy is known from conversations Circular economy is known from news and media
The industry needs to be changed to be more sustainable but it is difficult to determine how it could be changed.
Does not know how industry could be changed to be more sustainable
For many of the interviewed B2B customers, concepts such as circular economy, life cycle analysis, and carbon neutrality were familiar. In some cases, the information about sustainability had come from industry related studies, work training, and studying the product information. Therefore, it can be said that many were well informed about sustainable building. Also, many were moderately informed about the sustainability terms, and information was received from news and media and general conversations. This finding aligns with the previous research from the industry by Son et al. (2009), where they found out that constructors in the US and Korea have a high awareness level of sustainability. Furthermore, it implies that the level of motion, intensity, and size of sustainability information the B2B customers experience is high since there is a lot of information coming from many sources to this specific stakeholder group. This has an impact on B2B customers' perception of the sustainability transformation of the construction industry.
However, some hadn’t heard about these central sustainability terms or were not sure about their definitions. In addition, some were not sure about what could be done or is being done in terms of sustainable development in the industry. Therefore, this shows that some B2B customers have knowledge gaps in the sustainability transformation and situation.The need and want for more education about sustainability came up. One answer to the question “How could the industry be changed to be more sustainable?” was, “I don’t know how we could affect. First, we should get educated about the subject so we would know what we are talking about”.
The aggregate dimension “Perception of sustainability situation and challenges” also includes 2nd order theme “Perception of importance of sustainable building” which includes 1st order concepts that demonstrate how important the interviewee stated that the transformation of the industry towards sustainable development goals is. How important the B2B customers value the sustainability transformation tells about how they perceive the issue generally.
Altogether, it includes 30 concepts that are shown in table 3. There possibly is a relationship with the “knowledge” theme and the “importance” theme since knowing and acknowledging
the sustainability situation affects how important the sustainability transformation is, according to the interviewee.
Table 3. 2nd order theme “Perception of the importance of sustainable building” and the 1st order concepts it includes.
Perception of importance of sustainable building
The quality of products and materials is important in terms of sustainable building The quality of building is important in terms of sustainable building
The design phase is important in terms of sustainable building
Construction industry affect sustainability in a way that certain norms and criteria need to be met
Sustainable building offers a longterm investment for customers Sustainable building takes into account environment
Construction industry has a positive effect on creating jobs (economic sustainability) Believe that sustainable development is one of the main purposes of construction industry Sustainable building is the future
The industry should be developed to be more sustainable The change needs to come from inside the industry itself
Sustainability is important in terms of human health (houses shouldn't have problems with mold)
Building industry could set an example for other industries in terms of sustainability Sustainablity is important because of future generations
Sustainability is important because construction industry couls set an example for other industries
Sustainability is important in terms of the whole picture (better globe).
Sustainability is important in terms of circular economy.
Changing to be more sustainable is important in because of environment and energy efficiency
Sustainability is very important in terms of human health (mold houses should be avoided) It is important to change the industry to be more sustainable because buildings should last longer and there is too much investments going to preparing new buildings that were not build well enough in the first place
Sustainability has an impact on buying decisions
Sustainability has a big impact on purchase decision in terms of quality Has already introduced more sustainable product options
Willingness to change to a more sustainable product if there is one in the markets Willingness and interest towards sustainability initiatives
Has already changed to more sustainable work protocol and willingness to do even more is there
Perceives that industry has a moderate impact on sustainability (from scale of 10-5, 5) The interviewers perception is that industry has a small impact on sustainability Building industry is already fairly sustainable
Changing the industry to be more sustainable is not very important (on the scale of 1-10 = 3)
Overall, the answers in this section displayed that the majority of B2B customers think that it is important to change the industry towards a higher sustainability level. This finding again supports the findings of Son et al. (2009), where they found out that constructors have a high level of preparedness of sustainability in the US and Korea. The interviews portrayed that B2B customers perceived sustainability to be important because of human health and wellbeing, creating a better image of the industry, setting an example for other industries, acknowledging and building for future generations, creating long-term investments, protecting environments and creating energy-efficient solutions, enhancing circular economy, innovation value and creating a better globe and living environment.
Generally, there was a positive attitude towards sustainability initiatives and alternative sustainable products. Some were even interested in a more sustainable product even when it would cost more than the alternative option. Some answers showed that sustainability impacted the purchasing decisions and that sustainability is often already incorporated in the daily work routines. Additionally, some conversations stated that sustainability is integrated into the overall strategy of the company. Therefore, the study by Low, Gao, and See (2014) where they found that eco-labeling works in the industry are supported by the findings in a way that the interviews show that there is a market demand for sustainability in the construction industry. Many B2B customers saw sustainable product alternatives are going to grow in demand in the future. Many were already focused on emphasizing the sustainability of their products, for example, in terms of quality.
Furthermore, B2B customers saw sustainability as something investment-worthy. One answer when talking about how important changing the industry to be more sustainable was:
“It is extremely important. In terms of energy efficiency and the environment, it is a spectacular thing. And if construction pursues sustainability, it would set an example for other industries”. Another answer that reflected that B2B customers see sustainability as an important issue was: “Building industry effects sustainability a lot, and it is one of their main missions. I see it as important”.
However, some B2B customers thought that sustainable development is not that important to them. One answer to the question “How important is it to change the industry to be more sustainable?” was: ”If this were on a scale from 1-10, it would be a 3/10. So, I don’t feel it is important”. Additionally, some B2B customers thought that the industry is already fairly sustainable or has a moderate or even low impact on sustainability. Even though a minority of answers aligned with the low importance level, this implies that some B2B customers have a clear knowledge gap about the subject and also that more efficient communication, education, and engagement is needed in the industry.
Furthermore, the aggregate dimension “Perception of sustainability situation and challenges”
includes 2nd order theme “Perception of sustainability challenges” that had 17 concepts that rose from discussions about what should be changed or discussed in the sustainable building field. Table 4 displays all of the concepts in this theme.
Table 4. 2nd order theme “Perception of sustainability challenges” and the 1st order concepts it includes.
Overall, sustainability issues were acknowledged openly, and the interviewees seemed very aware of different issues that need tackling in the industry. The awareness and knowledge about sustainability issues have an effect on how important B2B customers believe the transformation is and how they perceive it generally. One issue that came up in many of the conversations is overregulation in some areas and insufficient regulation and supervision in others. Furthermore, one B2B customer mentioned the problem of buyer and constructor having different goals. He pointed out that sometimes constructors aim to build as cheap and effective as they can, and the buyer aims to have a good quality build. This difference of perspective creates tension in the industry. B2B customers often mentioned the quality of buildings, especially the quality of public buildings such as schools and kindergartens, are seen as sustainability challenges. Additionally, according to the interviews, often cheap materials and products have the most market demand in the industry as opposed to a better-quality option, and this creates a challenge in terms of sustainability of the building.
Sometimes the interviewees thought that the biggest issues were in the construction phase, where there are cases of inadequate protection of the building when constructing.
Additionally, there were conversations about insufficient recycling due to lack of motivation, space in the construction site, and lacking recycling protocol. Ordering excess of building materials in the construction sites came up in the conversations, and therefore optimizing purchases could be developed further. Another issue that was mentioned and reflected often is the strict timetables and haste that create a challenge in the industry. The majority of the B2B customers were aware of the sustainability challenges related to their work and field.
Furthermore, the interviews implicate that overall many B2B customers see that there is still a lot that could be done in the industry in terms of sustainable development.